Largan expects 4G to boost demand

STRONG SALES:：Largan’s CEO said the firm expects a sequence of high sales results to arise after last month, when NT$3.39bn in consolidated sales were reported

Staff writer, with CNA

Thu, Jun 19, 2014 - Page 14

Largan Precision Co (大立光), which supplies smartphone camera lens products, said yesterday that efforts by many countries to develop 4G networks are expected to raise smartphone demand and in turn to boost smartphone lens shipments in the second half of this year.

In an annual general meeting, Largan CEO Adam Lin (林恩平) told shareholders that his company is expected to post sales for this month and next month on a par with last month’s, when its consolidated sales hit a record high due to strong demand for 4G smartphones.

Last month, Largan’s consolidated sales totaled NT$3.39 billion (US$113 million), up 6 percent from the previous month and up 73 percent from a year earlier. It was the second consecutive month in which Largan posted a record high in monthly sales.

In addition to the high hopes about a sales growth driver from 4G services, Lin said that the smartphone industry will enter a traditional peak season in the second half of the year and that he expects Largan to have a better second half than the first.

The company is expected to report a quarter-on-quarter improvement in consolidated sales for the last two quarters of this year.

Last month, 10 megapixel and above lenses accounted for 10 to 20 percent of Largan’s total sales, with 8 megapixel lenses making up 30 to 40 percent, and 5 megapixel lenses 30 to 40 percent.

Lin said demand for lenses of 10 megapixels and more, which command a higher gross margin, has been on the rise, so that his company has been supplying more 13 megapixel lenses than ever to customers.

Shareholders yesterday approved a proposal to pay a cash dividend of NT$28.5, making the dividend payout the highest in the company’s history, after Largan posted NT$71.64 in earnings per share for last year, a record high. Dividend yield will be 1.39 percent based on the company’s closing price of NT$2,050 yesterday.